Staredown
by Sahrgal
Summary: What if the events in "Kir'Shara" went a little differently? Soval and Shran do that rare thing called agreeing with each other.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** **I saw a meme made by a new, but dear friend online, hinting at some special tension *wink wink* between Soval and Shran. I got inspired. I slapped together this fic. Emily and Ellis, my loves, if you're reading this, I hope you love it! #pervgang !**

 **Disclaimer:** **Much of the dialogue is taken directly from the episode "Kir'Shara" as this is set then. Star Trek and its characters are not mine, the smut is :)**

"Open a channel."

Commander Tucker's face twitched, a flash of incredulity flashing across his face as he peered at the Vulcan beside him, "To who?" When Soval offered to help him find Shran to warn him about an impending attack from the currently corrupt High Command, hailing a lifeless nebula was not what he had in mind.

"The nebula,"Soval looked back at him, feeling the slightest bit of exasperation that he was sure the human wouldn't pick up, with a look that said _Just do it_. He knew that the crew did not trust him, but did the commander really believe he would bring him all the way here as some sort of joke? Tucker nodded to Hoshi seated at the comms station. With a quick few punches of some buttons, a channel was open to the cloud of ignited gases that supposedly shrouded a number of Andorian vessels. "This is Ambassador Soval. I have come on an urgent mission. I must speak with Commander Shran."

Nothing.

Soval flicked his gaze to the floor and back up to the viewscreen. He knew they wouldn't give away their position at just that. And so he continued despite all eyes on the bridge turned to him in uncertainty. "The High Command has decrypted your security protocols. We are well aware that your task force has been hiding in this nebula."

Still nothing.

Tucker looked distinctly uncomfortable at encountering a rare situation: a wrong Vulcan. He quickly thought of ways to phrase that respectfully to the Ambassador. "Maybe your information's out of date." He intended it to sound more like a statement but it came out more like a question. He wasn't confident in this situation at all. Soval appeared completely unfazed at the situation, though Tucker also never saw T'Pol truly look fazed by such things. Maybe Soval just didn't show it if he was?

"He's in there." The lilt in the middle of that sentence revealed that indeed he wasn't and that he had no doubt that someone was in there. That hit Tucker as quite expressive, for a Vulcan at least. Maybe due to so much contact with Humans.

If Shran really was in there, then maybe he'd be more likely to respond if a Human addressed him rather than the Vulcan.

"This is Commander Tucker of the Enterprise," he paused a beat, "We've got some information you're gonna want to hear." Immediately after, a repetitive chirping sounded from the helm. Mayweather's scanners picked up another ship's presence.

"Sir," the helmsman chimed as the comms station beeped, indicating an incoming hail. Hoshi confirmed it. It was from the Andorian ship that finally appeared from the shroud of the nebula. At Commander Tucker's nod, Shran's scowling face appeared on the bridge's display.

"Commander Tucker. You have a poor choice in friends," the Andorian commander not-so-subtly sneered, his antennae drawing forward in distaste.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXx

"An invasion?!" Shran not quite shouted, incredulous. He turned from the screen displaying Soval's copy of maps that showed the locations of both the High Command's and Imperial Guard's ships to face the Ambassador and the commander.

"That is correct," Soval affirmed. Shran still wasn't convinced of course.

"We keep a very close eye on your fleet. We would know if the High Command were preparing to attack," the Andorian countered boldly, his eyes glued to Soval's, watching for a reaction. He saw no trepidation, only a hardness that bore deep. The Vulcan moved quickly toward the viewscreen that Shran had just turned his back to. Shran mirrored his movement, but the way that the Vulcan was leaning over to point at various markers on the screen left part of his chest millimeters away from touching Shran's upper back. The Vulcans mouth was also rather close to his right ear. His antennae straightened up tall before settling again in surprise. If he breathed a little more deeply, that movement would for sure make their bodies touch. A slight nudge of the head would bring Vulcan lips to Andorian ears. It unsettled him being this close to any Vulcan, especially this one.

"V'Las has been assembling ships near Regulus, beyond the range of your listening stations." Soval retreated backward to his former position. Shran let out a quiet breath. His expression hardened.

"Your leaders may be fools, but they are _not_ suicidal. They know we _will_ respond!" Shran was furious and every bit of it showed as his face contorted with every word and the way his hands immediately balled into tight fists. Soval, as always, did not rise to his display as anger.

"They were told you are adapting Xindi weaponry and that you are planning to use it against Vulcan." Shran's expression soured further. He could laugh at how ridiculous that sounded, but the rage he felt trumped any vestigial amusement.

"That's absurd! Captain Archer destroyed the Xindi prototype before we could examine it. That gave Soval pause, however it was only momentary. The small furrow between his brows decreased in depth. That was not what he had expected to hear, but he was relieved nonetheless. He took a small breath.

"That fact was… conveniently omitted," he admitted. Shran took a step towards the Vulcan, leaving mere inches between them. The Vulcan's nostrils flared at their proximity, the action also causing him to involuntarily inhale. His senses were filled with the Andorian's scent. If cold had a scent, Shran's would be it. The slight tingling the sensation brought reminded him of smelling mint. Shran looked him deep in the eyes as he unleashed his frustration with his people,

"You people are so used to lying that you don't even tell the truth to each other!" Soval's eye twitched very slightly in response to the volume of the other man's voice assaulting his sensitive hearing at such close quarters. "How do I know you weren't sent here as a diversion?"

"You don't," he replied simply. Shran inched even closer.

"Do you have _any idea_ what will happen when the Imperial Guard RETALIATES?!" the decibels of Shran's rose with every word, "It will be a _disaster_ for both our worlds!" Soval continued to stare him down. He was fully aware of the circumstances. That's why he was here, informing Shran against the wishes of his government. He knew Shran well enough from past interactions to predict a reaction of this sort. What he did not expect was the continuous invasion of his personal space. Even less expected was his continuous allowance of it.

Despite the gravity of the situation, he noticed the lengthy closeness of the two other men. Tucker very briefly wondered if Shran was planning on assaulting the Vulcan or kissing him, as absurd as _that_ sounded. He instantly mentally berated himself for allowing himself to ponder that at all, especially given the circumstances. He continued to watch their exchange with interest.

"Which is why you must convince them to intercept our fleet," the Vulcan returned gravely, eyes refusing to break contact. Shran narrowed his eyes at the Vulcan and his jaw slacked the tiniest bit. He was understandably appalled.

"You're betraying your own people by telling me this."

"I am aware of that."

"Why are you doing it?" Shran asked, still not seeing the Vulcan's motivation for committing the very definition of treason. Soval straightened his back impossibly further than how he normally held it.

"The High Command is counting on the element of surprise. If they meet resistance, I believe V'Las will be forced to call off the invasion." Shran finally moved to turn away, breaking their very long stare down and put some distance between Soval and himself as he processed all of this invaluable information. He turned back to the other man.

"When does this invasion begin?" Soval's features hardened.

"Soon," his eyes widened a fraction to communicate his sincerity and to attempt to further sway Shran to heed his advice. Shran's face soured again.

"That's the best you could give me? ...Soon?" Receiving such a vague indicator of time only replaced the edge that he had slightly lost as the exchange wore on and he had deemed Soval's information credible enough to act on. Soval nodded.

"Yes." Shran swung his head to face Commander Tucker, eyes searching his face as he moved toward him.

"Do you believe him, pink-skin?"

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't," he returned solemnly. Shran's antennae lowered a fraction in acceptance, once again faced Soval, then moved past him to the viewport on the side of the conference room they were stood in.

"I'll need to consult with my superiors," he sounded slightly resigned, if anything. He was as disappointed as he was furious at the situation. His interactions with the humans over the past few years had helped him see a bit past his prejudice about Vulcans because they were able to trust Soval and their own T'Pol. That maybe they weren't horrible. He feared the humans had themselves fooled and that his people were right all along.

"I suggest you do it fast," said Tucker.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Bridge to Commander Shran."

"This is Shran."

"We've isolated the Vulcan's biosignature. He's alone."

"You're certain Enterprise won't detect the transport?"

"All they'll see is a brief energy surge." the female voice from the ships comm reassured, "They'll think it came from the nebula." At Shran's lack of response, the officer tried again, "Commander?" Shran took a long, deep breath.

"Energize when ready."

 **A/N:** **Sexy times being served real soon, stay** **tuned ;)**


	2. Chapter 2

A swell of electric blue light occupied the chair before him as a certain Vulcan began to materialize. Shran smirked. On Soval's face was a rare display of complete surprise, gasping and eyes wide, as he became aware. Another Andorian officer approached Soval's seated form with a plasma rifle directed at him to keep the Vulcan from doing anything as unwise as attempting to stand or escape.

"Welcome aboard, Ambassador," Shran said with a hint of menace. Soval's brows drew together fiercely. This was the last thing he had expected the Andorian commander to do. The other Andorian officer lowered metal restraints over Soval's torso and thighs and secured them before leaving the room at Shran's motion. They were now alone.

"If you are expecting me to plead for mercy, you will be waiting a long time," Soval declared as evenly as ever having recovered for his lapse in composure. Shran approached him.

"I simply want to know your fleet's actual location."

"I have already given it to you."

"Then consider this our way of confirming what you told us." Soval knew the Andorians would hold their suspicion after Shran had returned to his ship. He had expected another meeting with Shran or another official, not to be kidnapped from _Enterprise_. Shran moved to stand next to him and activated a switch and Soval's seat had thrummed to life. In his peripheral vision, Soval noticed a couple rods coming out from the top of the chair coming around to loosely bracket his skull. His heart rate inched up the smallest bit. He did not know what to expect. Shran bent down putting their faces obscenely close yet again and sneered, "You didn't expect the Imperial Guard to mobilize its _entire_ fleet based on nothing more than the word of one _loyal_ Vulcan diplomat?" Soval would not show him any discomfort that this closeness provoked.

"We spent weeks arguing over details in our treaty negotiations," he peered at Shran's face, noting that he indeed was truly listening to what he had to say, "Did I ever mislead you?"

"No," replied the Andorian. It almost sounded as if he didn't like that admission. Shran straightened and moved behind the apparatus that soval was seated on. He could hear the pads of the Andorian's fingers brushing against the bracket over his head. Again, Soval began to feel uneasy. He had a few ideas as to what Shran planned on doing at this point.

"You must know that torture is rarely effective against Vulcans. Our mental disciplines allow us to suppress pain." Shran scoffed at that softly.

"Our security division has had a great deal of experience _extracting_ information from Vulcan operatives," he clicked something directly over Soval's head into place. Another mechanical whirr started up. "This machine doesn't cause _physical_ discomfort. It uses a neuro-synaptic field to lower your emotional threshold." Outside of Shran's view from behind him, Soval briefly closed his eyes. He was beginning to feel unsure of himself, but he was also unsure of how well this machine did its job. He would remain calm. He opened his eyes as the Andorian once again rounded the machine, but did not return to his place beside the Vulcan. He picked up a remote from a nearby console activated another switch that brought the machine fully to life. Immediately, Soval noticed something beating at his mental shields. The force of it took his breath away and he gasped and let out a groan and screwed his eyes shut as he pushed against it. He wasn't sure what he expected of the device, but he realized the Andorian was not bluffing. Soval was in agony. He opened his eyes again to see Shran staring at him intently. "How do you feel?" Soval continued to make soft gasps and shuddered as the onslaught continued. He was more focused inward and did not catch the question. Shran moved closer and again left their faces inches apart. "I've seen Vulcans who were _broken_ by this device," he continued gravely. He really did not wish to harm this specific Vulcan as he had come to not completely abhor his presence, but he had to know. He could not afford to risk everything if Soval was spouting falsehoods, "They were never the same again. I have _no_ desire to see that happen to you. WHERE is your fleet?!"

"I told you!" the Vulcan yelled in return, unsettling the Andorian at his display, "Our ships are assembling near Regulus." Shran clicked his tongue softly, he couldn't let himself be convinced so easily even if seeing Soval in this state on a low setting of this device pulled at his heart. Had things been very different, Shran would have considered the Vulcan's counsel and companionship invaluable because of his sense of loyalty and relationship with the humans. Cringing slightly as he did so, he turned the dial on his remote a notch over, increasing the intensity of the field over the Vulcan. The whining grew louder and higher. The Vulcan let out and even more long and drawn out groan and then full on _whimpered_ as he writhed in the chair. Shran looked away.

"Release me!" he begged, utter despair punctuating the demand.

"I can't!" he once again looked at Soval, "Not until I'm certain you've told us the truth."

"Then I suggest you increase the setting AND GET THIS OVER WITH!" he roared. And so Shran did. The push against Soval's shields finally turned what were cracks and fissures in his mental defenses into a full on gaping hole. The energy poured in and Soval felt as if his entire head, his entire mind was being crushed and twisted. He wasn't aware that he had started screaming. He thrashed against the restraints that would not give. He continued pushing against his mental attacker, wanting nothing more than for it to cease to exist. His body was doing nothing he commanded it to do, to force whatever this was out, to stop moving, for the adrenaline to cease coursing through his veins. After a while, he got somewhat desensitized to the onslaught, and writhed less in his chair and was reduced to small tremors. He eventually stopped screaming, but he was still nowhere near out of pain. He and Shran were just staring at each other, waiting the next man out. Their eye contact did not break when the ship's intercom whistled as Shran paced the room. A female voice filtered through the speaker,

" _Bridge to Commander Shran._ "

"What is it?" Shran asked brusquely, eyes intent on Soval's. The Vulcan had an odd look on his now panting and sweaty face.

" _The General is asking for an update on the interrogation_."

"Tell him I'll contact him when I'm ready," he ordered.

" _Acknowledged_ ," replied the voice. The communication terminated. Soval started making a noise that was a cross between a chuckle and a sob, his body shook. Shran's antennae stood at the unfamiliar sound, then went flat against his head in annoyance. He approached the chair.

"You find this amusing?"

"Ordinarily, I would not, but because of this device, I-" Soval again started that weird laugh again.

"There are three _higher_ settings on this panel!" Shran said lowly, holding up the remote in his hand, "If I use them…" his voice began to shake the slightest bit. Realization dawned on the Vulcan's face.

"You are afraid to injure me," Soval pointed out. A wild look flashed in the Vulcan's eyes, "If I were you, I would leave that detail out of your report to the general." At that, Shran leaned in and grabbed Soval by his collar roughly.

"WHERE. ARE. YOUR. SHIPS. SOVAL!" Shran bellowed. He received no response and he was not surprised at Soval's distraction. He moved to stand next to and lean over the trembling and Vulcan and put his hand on his face, using the physical stimulus to gain his attention even if momentarily. Soval widened his eyes at the contact and looked at him. The trembling subsided very slightly and Shran kept his hand where it was and brought the other to join it on Soval's other cheek to keep him aware. "Can I finally trust that you have told the truth?" He asked much more gently than before, knowing the state Soval was in, and knowing that in that state he could not lie if he wanted to. Nothing was fabricated, anything the Vulcan did or said under this influence was caused by their own will to do it, without their defenses smothering it out.

"Yes," Soval all but whimpered. Tears brimmed in his eyes now. He didn't know how much longer he could hold out Shran couldn't keep on the torture any longer. Shran removed his hands from Soval's face, not moving to lean away, and reached for the remote, deactivating the field, then returned his. Soval went boneless in the chair, but did not lose consciousness as many Vulcans had in that chair

"Thank you. I _am_ sorry I had to do this to you, Soval. I was under orders. Shran looked truly apologetic, with guilt and… _affection_ emanating from his eyes.

"I… understand," Soval returned shakily. Shran removed his hands at last from the Vulcan's face, forgetting they were there and moved to stand straight. And to his great surprise, Soval's neck craned up to follow him and brought their lips together. Shran started, his noise of surprise muffled by their joined mouths, then kissed back a bit clumsily. Then he pulled away quickly, causing Soval to laugh again. It was evident that emotional threshold was still a bit compromised.

"What are you doing?"

"Something I have thought about occasionally." Shran didn't know how to respond to that, so he deflected a little.

"Why did you just kiss me the pink-skin way?" That earned an eyebrow raised from Soval, who upturned his palms on his thighs.

"My hands _are_ quite effectively bound, Commander," Soval supplied with a smirk that Shran found himself appreciating too much. Shran noticed something else in the vicinity of Soval's thighs: some very pronounced tenting in Soval's trousers. Oh my…

A smirk played itself on Shran's own face, his antennae swaying slightly in interest. "Then let's get this contraption off you, shall we?"

"Indeed".

Shran released Soval from the bars holding him to the chair. He leaned down over the Vulcan, peering into hooded eyes that also studied him closely. His lips were millimeters from Soval's and he kept them there, smiling a little. He placed both his hands on the Vulcan's shoulders, then slowly slid them down until his fingertips dragged along Soval's palms, then his fingers. The Vulcan shuddered at the contact and Shran took that opportunity to catch Soval's lips as they parted. He kissed with much more confidence than the first time, nipping and licking at the green-tinged lips all the while swinging his leg up and over the Vulcan before settling in his lap.

"It's nice to be the one looking down on a Vulcan instead of the other way around," Shran joked. Soval gave a small huff at that and the small movement that rippled through his body reminded Shran of the wood Soval was sporting.

"If looking down to me is what you wish, then that can be arranged," Soval said lowly, eyes full of sparks as his hand moved from where it sat at Shran's waist to the tent poking against his stomach, eliciting a groan from the Andorian above him as he rubbed him slow and firm through his pants.

"I'm not asking, Vulcan," Shran grunted out as he ground against that hand.

"Then what do you demand I do, _Commander_?" Shran shivered. He had never been so turned on by the utterance of his rank.

Shran lifted himself off the Vulcan's lap and moved to stand beside him then motioned with his head and eyes toward the deck in front of him. In moments, the Vulcan was in front of the Andorian licking his way into his mouth and toying at one of Shran's sensitive antennae with his own sensitive fingers. Shran's hands roamed over Soval's slim body and felt the muscles often obscured by the ambassador's robes. He briefly imagined a sweaty and shirtless Soval training in a gym somewhere on Vulcan, muscles bulging and those stupid bangs clinging to the diplomat's forehead.

"It is not customary on Vulcan to forego a shirt during exercise," Soval whispered against the blue skin of Shran's neck that he had just licked a fresh stripe on.

"Watch it with that telepathy of yours, Vulcan. I can get much dirtier than you can realize," he said as he brought his hands onto Soval's shoulders and pressed down. Soval sank to his knees, dark eyes on his the entire way down. He deftly undid the front clasps of the Andorian's trousers and nuzzled his face against the bulge in front of him. Shran carded his fingers through the silvery strands of the Soval's hair, taking care to stroke the shells of his elegantly pointed ears every now and then, drawing shudders from the man on his knees before him. Never in a million years would Shran have ever thought he would see the Vulcan ambassador on his knees for _anyone_. And never in a billion years would he have imagined this Vulcan nuzzling his dick through his boxers like a cat does to the hand that pets it. "What's taking you so long, Vulcan?"

Dark eyes immediately shot up to his, ablaze with lust. Soval did not provide him with an answer. Instead, he roughly tugged the boxers and trousers and let them form a pool at the Andorian's feet. A dark blue monster of an erection bobbed freely now and Soval brought his head down under it before a green-tinged tongue dragged itself from the base all the way up the underside to the tip and swirled there. Soval's eyes never left Shran's whilst doing so, and that stare continued to bore into him as he opened his mouth wide and took him in all the way down to the hilt. Shran thanked the gods of the universe for the the fact that Vulcans didn't possess a gag reflex and ground out a string of Andorian curse words as Soval's head started bobbing. Long fingered hands trailed themselves up his calves then settled on gripping the back of his thighs before pulling them towards their owner. He looked down, eyeing Soval with confusion. Soval simply opened his mouth impossibly wider, the blue cock filling it contrasting with the green flush of his cheeks and repeated the action. And then Shran understood exactly what he was doing.

"Why you _naughty_ Vulcan!" Shran exclaimed, one of his hands moving to the back of the Vulcan's head and grabbing a fistful of silver hair and pushing him down on his cock. "You want me to fuck you in the face, huh?" A moan escaped outstretched Vulcan lips that got the Andorian's hips moving at a pace that became more punishing with each thrust. Moans and that sloppy _hyuck hyuck hyuck_ sound filled the small room, occasionally interrupted by Soval pausing to take a breath or Shran swearing colorfully until Shran's hips finally stuttered when he reached the edge. He yanked Soval's head back enough to see the swollen blue head of his cock resting on that glorious tongue and he exploded into white stripes, filling the waiting mouth. Soval obediently swallowed and licked any extra off of his lips before pulling Shran's underwear and pants up and fastening them as the Andorian worked to get his breathing under control. He stood up and straightened his shirt and hair casually.

"I believe it is time that I be returned to _Enterprise_ ," Soval stated plainly. Anyone that would have seen him at that moment would have seen the image of the typical calm and cool Vulcan. Any evidence of the torture that had transpired or the raunchiness he had just finished was nowhere to be seen on him. Shran scoffed.

"That's it?" Shran demanded.

"To what are you referring, Shran?"

"You know… returning the favor?" That earned him a very small smirk and a mischievous glint of the eyes, but no verbal answer.

Suddenly, the entire ship rocked, a hit to the shields outside audible in the interrogation rooms. Shran rushed to a comm and demanded a report from the bridge.

" _It's the Starfleet ship_ ," the female from before supplied. Another blast rocked the ship. " _Should we return fire?_ "

"Are you going to make enemies of the humans as well? Or will you send me back now?" Soval questioned.

"Lieutenant, have our ships ordered out of the nebula," he said into the comm, smiling a small smile at Soval.

" _Commander_?" the female sounded dubious.

"And tell _Enterprise_ we'll be returning the Ambassador shortly."

" _Understood_ ," came the voice as it signed off.

"I guess I'll find out what you look like under those clothes another time, Ambassador," Shran said half ruefully, half joking.

"Perhaps, Commander. Perhaps."


End file.
